Halo 4 is adamant about proving its competence and convincing you of its necessity. You don't often see a monolithic franchise putting up a fight for fans, but the departure of Bungie has awakened doubt – enough to incur a fierce response from Halo's new custodians at 343 Industries. And so the developer launches the best kind of protest, which is to wave an ...

Halo 4 for $18 at Best Buy today
If you've yet to experience John 117's latest adventure, you should know that Halo 4 is a mere $18 at Best Buy today. That deal is valid only for today, by the way, giving you a great excuse Forerunning to the nearest store. [Thanks, Hank!] ...
PSA: Halo 4 'Castle Map Pack' available now
Halo 4's final piece of DLC included in the War Games Map Pass, the Castle Map Pack, is available now on the Xbox Marketplace. For those without the pass, the map pack is $10. The pack adds three multiplayer maps (Daybreak, Outcast and Perdition), with Outcast featuring "frequent Mantis vs. Wraith ...
Halo 4's second run of McFarlane toys includes exclusive DLC
McFarlane Toys' second run of Halo 4 action figures will include special vouchers for exclusive DLC in 343 Industries' game. Master Chief, Elite Ranger, Storm Jackal and two different Spartan figures will be offered – plus a deluxe nine-inch tall Didact figure, planned for the fall. In a blog ...
Halo 4 as a love story: The personal origins of Cortana's breakdown
The Halo universe's sentient artificial intelligence programs – smart AIs – have a limited lifespan. After seven years, they begin to break down, acting irrationally and eventually thinking themselves to death. This process is known as Rampancy and closely resembles humanity's own ...
Overheard@GDC: 'Thanks for your question.'
Speaking at a Halo 4 GDC panel (there were a lot of them), 343 Industries franchise creative director Josh Holmes spent some time discussing the game's story, specifically that of the relationship between Master Chief and Cortana. We asked a question during the Q&A period – the only ...
What went wrong with Halo 4's Prometheans
"We had a number of concerns about the Forerunners that we thought went not completely according to plan and could be improved upon," 343 Industries design director Scott Warner told the audience at his GDC 2013 panel, "The Design of New Enemies for Halo 4," which discussed the design philosophies ...
New Halo 4, Gears of War Judgment DLC available for free today
If you feel like shooting aliens on your Xbox today, you are very likely to be able to do so in a new venue. Both Halo 4 and Gears of War Judgment have new DLC, available at no extra cost. Having passed certification early, Microsoft has released the Halo 4 "Forge Island" map well in advance of its ...
Forward Unto Dawn and staying true to Halo
You might think that the biggest challenge in creating Halo 4's Forward Unto Dawn series was translating one of gaming's most beloved franchises into a live-action film that was not only true to the source material, but also worth watching. You'd be right, of course, but for fans the biggest ...
Halo 4 getting new Forge Island map for free on April 11
343 Industries has announced at PAX East this weekend that Halo 4 is getting a new Forge map, with plenty of blank, open canvas for Halo level makers to paint their creativity on. As you can see in the quick video on IGN's page, "Forge Island" actually has three different islands of varying size, ...
Halo 4 lowers drawbridge for Castle Map Pack on April 8
Halo 4 is getting yet another batch of DLC next month. Entitled the Castle Map Pack, the content adds three new multiplayer maps: Daybreak, Outcast and Perdition. The new maps are designed around objective gametypes and vehicle use, with Outcast in particular promising "frequent Mantis vs. Wraith ...
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